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| Alan Ayckbourn |
Cleadon Village Drama Club
23 June 2011
You know when you get them days that you just want to finish work and chill out..nothing had gone right all day and I just wanted to curl up and rest my bruised ribs (long but silly story) - but it wasn't to be tonight. I had booked to review Alan Ayckbourn's 'Relatively Speaking' at the lovely CVDC.
I turned up on my push bike, yes that is my mode of transport these days, it was lovely lovely night, and to be honest I could have just stayed baking up the sun in the car park.
Relatively Speaking is one the most funniest plays that Ayckbourn has produced, it tell the tale of love, adultery, high end confusion and the great British way of looking at things upside down and inside out.
The play all this week is being staged in 'The Round' meaning that the 40 strong audience are merely only a spit away from the cast, I had only ever seen this done at The Live Theatre in Newcastle, another very intimate venue.
The round consisted of two separate scenes, the first, where the sparring couple of Gregg (Dean Jukes) and Ginny (Gillian Crossley) are going at it like hammer and tongs in her flat in London - in the arguing sense.Gregg is new at this love malarkey and wants to make an honest woman of Ginny. Ginny is not the most honest of women and would take a holy miracle to change her, many strange phone calls hint at Greggs mind that all is not right. A trip for Ginny to her 'parents' place in the Home Counties doesn't help matters.She is desperate to go on her own, but Gregg follows post haste. This is where the the real confusion starts and leads us into the the next scene and Act 2. Gregg manages to get to the house before Ginny and makes polite conversation with her 'mother' Sheila (DeniseWilson) and onto less than polite mumblings with her 'dad' Philip (Peter Calert) Gregg spills his utmost emotions to both of them, they of course have no idea of what on earth he is on about..or even who he is (I am really trying hard not to give too much away here! haha). Ginny makes her appearance and all hell of confusion is unleashed. Without giving the game away a very murky and highly amusing set of circumstances come into play.
With fantastic performances from all on stage, great sound\light from David Oliver and a superb direction from Paul Lamb, this is definitely a must see. I am told that that some seats are still available for Saturday night, without doubt you have to see it...all will be revealed on the night!
SOOO glad that I came along, it perked me up no end, the acting was second to none. The script is a die for laugh out loud farce of the highest order, that had the small theatre crowd bellowing out in laughter. Cracking piece of entertainment. 4.5*'s all the way!
Runs until 25th June
Michael Hunter
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